Miata #3 (My new 1992 Special Edition)

[nickt93]

I picked up another Miata yesterday - a 1992 Special Edition from a friend of mine at work that had a fender bender. He bought a 2003 SE from 4Sevens rather than fix this car, so I picked it up from him for $1200. It's going to need a new hood (have one of those lined up for $100), a new fender (no luck finding one yet...please help!), and a new front bumper cover (same story here - let me know if you have a spare!). I'm excited about getting this car back on the road - it really is in great shape; obviously has been garaged, has a new top, new tires, BBS, etc.

Just don't ask me why I bought it. I don't know! I guess I'm addicted. It's hard to pass up a sweet car for a thousand bucks. This one is going to be for my girlfriend - it will give her something a little more fun to drive every once in a while than her Accord.

Here are some pics:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-ShgRvmgTI/AAAAAAAACgU/DdnCcY_tg9E/s800/DSC00807.JPG

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-ShhIllC9I/AAAAAAAACgY/PFd012VsJhA/s800/DSC00808.JPG

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-Shh7O3EhI/AAAAAAAACgc/5GY1EDthINo/s800/DSC00809.JPG

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-ShisLmJ5I/AAAAAAAACgg/vKivRvDRqF8/s800/DSC00812.JPG



http://lh6.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-ShjEG9HMI/AAAAAAAACgk/mmvgt9CGmC8/s800/DSC00813.JPG

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-SiLP428VI/AAAAAAAAChI/rNBNYehssXs/s800/DSC00814.JPG

[nickt93]

A few shots of the interior:

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-SgGTy57BI/AAAAAAAAChM/dwFAZDbBBJk/s800/DSC00817.JPG

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-SiMeuREUI/AAAAAAAAChQ/hOw9uQMBAqQ/s800/DSC00818.JPG

[Stealth97]

looks like a serious easy fix.

[RotorNutFD3S]

Yes, hi, my name is Jealous.

[miata5620]

yeah sounds like you got a good deal the car looks like its pretty good shape in all the pictures.

[CaveRacing]

Excellent deal! Hey, this one looks just like Cate's new one! :)

[Dynra Rockets]

Excellent deal! Hey, this one looks just like Cate's new one! :)

jealous. looks like easy fix

[caseyfoster]

Ill be your girlfriend :) L@L

[friday]

Yes, hi, my name is Jealous.

Same here. Damn nick, besides the smashed parts that car looks great.

[Razz]

great find, I wish you luck with it.

[metalman]

Black & Tans suck. I hate it. :lol: ;)

[Jack-MX5ATLanta.com]

Jammy bagger! Good find!

[VitaminD]

Sweet ride for $1200!

[Beastinthebushes]

Calm down with the buying of the cars!!!!!!

But other wise, good buy and congrats! Now I know who to contact should the day ever come when I decide I want to sell my Miata.

[jzilla]

http://www.yugobernie.com/images/Humor/dayum.jpg

[matredd]

Stop it!

[Sawyer]

Damn that's in good shape. The interior looks flawless!

[oldgrayfrog]

I love it . I'm lookin into a vented hood for the 91, let me know if you want the old hood Nick.

[FE3tMX5]

Wow, that's pretty cool she let you give her a Miata instead of ring. :lol: I guess it's because it's obviously worth more and she appreciates a good deal when she sees it.

[nickt93]

Wow, that's pretty cool she let you give her a Miata instead of ring. :lol:

It's better than a ring - it has four rings (one on each piston!).

I picked up a Mariner Blue hood last weekend off of CL for $100 and got a new headlight too. Now all I need is a driver fender, bumper cover, and some paint!

[FE3tMX5]

I hope it's got more than four or you'll be shopping for parts. ;) I think you could fetch at least 2800 for the car when it's fixed... that'd buy a nice ring. :D

[nickt93]

One week and $275 in parts later (a hood, bumper cover, fender, and headlight assembly), this car is more or less ready for paint! I should have it back to pre-fender bender condition for around $1500 total. Thanks to Acro for the fender and bumper cover!

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/S-8T1J5OknI/AAAAAAAACk0/mmjXFQec3wg/s800/DSC00867.JPG

[MSMX5]

Lookin good!

[Razz]

awesome job that thing looks sweet.

[nickt93]

Time to get this project back on track! I picked up two quarts of Brilliant Black yesterday. I'm hoping to paint the front fender, hood, bumper, and hardtop this weekend. Wish me luck! I'll post pictures when complete.

The more I drive this car the more I love it. I've never really had a Miata with all of the creature comforts like a usable soft top, cushy OEM seats, a radio, AC, etc. It is kind of nice!

[GVfanatic]

Nick you have no clue how jealous i am of you. Im miataless and you have a miata for everyday of the week. lol

[nickt93]

I was young, broke and hungry once too. You'll have a driveway full of cars when you're my age. That is, assuming you don't do anything crazy like have kids :)

[Acro]

Lookin good ^^

[GVfanatic]

I was young, broke and hungry once too. You'll have a driveway full of cars when you're my age. That is, assuming you don't do anything crazy like have kids :)

Im 25 Nick lol. You're not that much older than me are you. Dont plan on havin any kids untill after im in my career and married.

I'm very interested in becoming a veterinarian, but i dont know where to start

[wonton]

vet school!

[Shortround]

^^ hahaha nice that does seem to be the logical answer

[CMP]

You mean working part-time at the local petting zoo won't cut it?

[GVfanatic]

I'm just lost when it comes to college stuff which is why i keep puttin it off. just seems overwhelming to me. I needz tha helpz.

[doombastic]

What a great find.

[Beastinthebushes]

Back on track...

The car looks great. It really was a steal, one of these days I'll have some extra funds and come across a deal like this. I'm interested in seeing the finished product. Has your girlfriend driven it yet? Does she have the itch to start modifying it?

[nickt93]

Has your girlfriend driven it yet? Does she have the itch to start modifying it?

Oh yeah man - she loves it! Her Accord is automatic, but every car she has had up until this point has been manual transmission. She prefers manual - I was pleasantly impressed to find that out!

So, onto the progress. Yesterday I spent a few hours stripping the paint off of the fender and bumper. What a b1tch! I was using 180 grit discs on my Porter Cable 7424 - probably should have gone with something coarser to speed up the job. It looks like these started off red - then were painted yellow - then silver on top of that - then a layer of black for good measure. Next time I'll start with panels that still have the OEM paint on them (but huge thanks to Acro for the great deal on the parts!).

I put the booth up today and sprayed the primer on all three panels (not pictured). Tomorrow I'll lay down the basecoat and clearcoat (if all goes well).



https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/TZlBpWsjlVI/AAAAAAAADRs/NERlQYifn7I/s640/photo.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/TZlB1_kfgoI/AAAAAAAADR0/BqVsuradfDY/s640/photo.JPG

[theothersawyer]

Looking forward to the progress of this one!

And I'm thinking I need to drop by Nick's paint and body and get a quote on a paint job! Hahah

[Reverend Greg]

+100 on that Danny that Snout would Look badness with a coat of paint
(G)

[ben91]

Sweet, you got the booth up! I'll sneak by with the challenge car while you're (already) spraying. ;)

[jzilla]

I'm just lost when it comes to college stuff which is why i keep puttin it off. just seems overwhelming to me. I needz tha helpz.

at 25 years old... this is the best advice I can give you. If you decide to go to college or vocational school, no matter what it is. Make sure you are focused and leave the partying and girls behind for about 2 - 4 years depending on what you do. The key is focus on your goal and you will not get overwhelmed.

[nickt93]

Laid down the base and clear last night. Came out pretty good! Looking forward to bolting these up to the car and seeing how well the color matches. I'll be sure to post pics when I do.

Keep in mind this is pre-wet sanding. Also, the hood photo got a little washed out and there is some white sh*t on it that isn't in the paint - some dust that fell on it after the paint was already dry.


https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/TZtIlpsPX6I/AAAAAAAADS0/5WmpiCpB5nQ/s800/photo.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/TZtIwNB0yMI/AAAAAAAADSU/Ibr8N08T-7Y/s800/photo.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_aAJssjPw7mE/TZtI9g3LgtI/AAAAAAAADSc/hY0EnJQpXQM/s800/photo.JPG

[RotorNutFD3S]

Looks good so far! Can I bring over the NB and we can redo the front bumper? I'm tired of fighting green dots. :lol:

[wildfire0310]

I am so jealous. I really need to get my miata in for some paint.

[ben91]

Like a boss.

[theothersawyer]

I bet you could honestly make money renting out the booth/painting peoples car.

[oldgrayfrog]

Hey Nick ya wanna paint all them new panels I have over at the house? I just don't trust Chico anymore:( I'll happily pay you instead!!

[nickt93]

Hey Nick ya wanna paint all them new panels I have over at the house? I just don't trust Chico anymore:( I'll happily pay you instead!!

Believe me dude, you wouldn't want me touching your stuff. My paint skills are okay, but still nowhere near the quality you would get from a professional!

[nickt93]

It's been a while since I updated on this car.

Check dis out!
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-xYbrRZEj8FE/Ty2_7tiGBpI/AAAAAAAAE8U/gHl9EDJcbDo/s800/photo.JPG

Laying the foundation for boost. I also have a few other parts - manifold, intercooler, etc. All I need now is a turbo, downpipe, and a few other odds and ends (oil/water lines, etc.)

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-oUmxbXdQLgg/TqAnILmzOoI/AAAAAAAAEdE/5yFj_gbjTys/s800/photo.JPG


As a reminder, here's how the car looked when I picked it up:
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-BxLJFtXVBzM/S-ShjEG9HMI/AAAAAAAACgk/JTCpBl9LAQQ/s800/DSC00813.JPG

I picked up a headlight, hood, bumper, and fender for about $300 total. Here is the car as it sits today:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OBztZoe1Z6o/Ty3AM4pG-vI/AAAAAAAAE8U/Zpz7euHbObc/s800/photo.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-OV4UMLnDd44/Ty3BOLjsxVI/AAAAAAAAE8U/tpFb5KAht9k/s800/photo.JPG

Added KYB AGXs with Ground Controls (used to be on my 95) and a set of 16x8 RPF1s.

[RotorNutFD3S]

Sweet! Looking great! So I take it your fiancee wanted boost? As I recall this was going to be her Miata. :D

[oldgrayfrog]

Oh yeah, I'm sure she was asking Nick for boost!

[nickt93]

Sweet! Looking great! So I take it your fiancee wanted boost? As I recall this was going to be her Miata. :D

She's all over it. I threw the idea out there initially and she bit.

[friday]

Car is looking great. I need to respray my front bumper. Looks like ****.

[theothersawyer]

Car looks awesome Nick!!!

[iamdallas]

Nice work!

[carnut169]

Looking good! Is your paint booth also your garage? Just put up plastic sheeting? Looks like a filter of some sort in a window?

I need to do my car and do have a buddy who owns a paint shop but it would be nice to do it in the garage...

[caseyfoster]

Damn, those wheels look so sick on that car.

Good job so far as well.

We picked up the same MSPNP the day before yesterday, it looks great. Cant wait to get everything dialed in on it.

[FE3tMX5]

I agree- 16s are the right size in that wheel on a Miata.

[nickt93]

I agree- 16s are the right size in that wheel on a Miata.

Most people hate on 16s on a Miata, especially on an NA. I had them laying around though, and figured I'd try them out. I like the way they look, and, more importantly, my fiance does too! She did ask what happened to her BBS though and wanted to make sure I didn't get rid of them!

[ben91]

The 16x8 also looks hot on an NB.

Want me to post your dyno graph?

[nickt93]

The 16x8 also looks hot on an NB.

Want me to post your dyno graph?

Most definitely!

[ben91]

There ya go, and as you can see, it's a monster. :p
(Before you get too depressed, our dyno reads 10-15% low as compared to a typical dynojet)

<edit>
Wow this site does a super bad job at image hosting. Here I hosted it on our site...

http://www.diyautotune.com/misc/MSPNP2_Nick.png

[nickt93]

Thanks Ben - this car is a monster! :lol:

Nowhere to go but up...

[nickt93]

Elise seats - now I see what all the fuss is over! I put one in the drivers' side of this car. Wow, what a seat - it's grippy AND comfortable!

Given the budget for this car, I'll probably sell it at some point in the near future. Start saving now! And withhold the low ball $250 offers for the monent - you know these things don't come cheap. This one is on custom Miata brackets with a slider.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Tda_G1J9Urs/T7QM4x3v4WI/AAAAAAAAFRM/FZp8FeXFQVw/s800/photo.JPG

[theothersawyer]

I'll give you $251 for the elise seat! :D